Support Our Youth and Families November 2019 | Page 2

said. “Our goal with the East interact with a robotic agriculture technology,” Turner said. “If you
Arlington Innovation Zone is to system to learn about gardening. don’t have internet access, it can
improve access to technology and State Representative Chris Turner, be virtually impossible to apply
technology-centered programming whose district includes major for a job, complete assignments
to help bridge our community’s portions of Arlington and Grand for school or any number of other
digital divide and ensure Arlington Prairie, added the grant as a rider tasks. By providing internet service,
is a place where people of all ages to House Bill 1, the two-year state laptops and other technology to
and backgrounds can achieve their budget. the community, East Arlington
American Dream.”
EAST LIBRARY AND RECREATION CENTER
$750,000 STATE GRANT
WILL IMPROVE ACCESS
TO TECHNOLOGY IN
EAST ARLINGTON
A new $750,000 Texas Library and Archives
Commission grant will help the City increase
the community’s access to technology within
and surrounding the future East Library and
Recreation Center.
Our goal with the East
Arlington Innovation
Zone is to improve
access to technology
and technology-
centered programming
to help bridge our
community’s digital
divide and ensure
Arlington is a place
where people of all
ages and backgrounds
can achieve their
American Dream.
MAYOR JEFF WILLIAMS
The joint facility, which is slated to open at Bob Cooke Park
residents will be better able to
“The new East Library and access medical care, employment
Additionally, the grant money will Recreation Center is in the heart resources, educational tools and
be used to add charging stations, of one of the most economically much more. I am glad I was able to
a laptop dispenser with computers challenged areas of our obtain this crucial funding, which
that residents may check out, community, where it’s difficult will make a real difference for many
internet hotspots for checkout, and for many residents to access District 101 residents.”
will give residents the ability to reliable internet and up-to-date
CITY OF ARLINGTON WATER UTILITIES
ARLINGTON HELPS 700 STUDENTS
BECOME MORE WATER WISE
Through the WaterWise program, nearly
700 Arlington and Mansfield students
participated in learning activities and
received take-home tools such as shower
timers, kitchen faucet aerators and toilet
leak detector tablets to become more water
efficient during the 2018-2019 school year. “I think the entire program really opens their eyes to
The WaterWise program is an annual partnership The program is part of the City of Arlington’s 2019
between Arlington Water Utilities and Tarrant Regional Water Conservation Plan, a document compiled every
Water District that distributes classroom materials five years for the Texas Commission on Environmental
aligned with the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills, Quality.
simple ways to track and preserve or precious water.
They really seemed shocked that something like
changing a faucet or shower head could make such an
impact,” said Stephanie Anderson, a teacher at Ditto
Elementary. “I hope that your program is as well-received
at other schools as it was with my class.”
off New York Avenue next year, will replace the existing partners can use to interact with residents through or TEKS, and principles of water conservation. Tarrant Hugh Smith Recreation Center and East Branch Library. classes, meetings and virtual appointments, Regional Water District is Arlington’s raw water provider. Along with educating students and their families, the
Arlington voters approved funding for the $26-million, including appointments with medical providers. Schools in the district apply to become part of the program has a goal of creating cost-effective water and
program and are served as long as funding remains energy savings.
47,249-square-foot facility in the 2014 Bond Election.
“We know that not all households in our growing
available.
DATA IN ACTION
The state’s Library Innovation Zone grant will allow community have access to computers or highspeed Arlington to expand internet availability, creating a tech- internet. Yet these tools today are critical when WaterWise is designed to generate immediate and long-
centered community outdoor space, while increasing the it comes to connecting our residents with term water resource savings. The curriculum delivers
technological capabilities within the recreation center educational and career resources, public services interactive, real-world education to the students and
and library as well. The latter will allow for the creation of or even information about their local government their families. The program also supplies students with
a high-tech community room and a video chat room that or school district,” Arlington Mayor Jeff Williams WaterWise kits to take home and use with their parents.
70% of students in the program reported that they
began using a shower timer to conserve water.
Households participating in the program can save an
estimated 5,879 gallons of water per year.